Which do you play...ice, inline, or both

[Accord 0]

Hypothetical for you guys who play only ice: if you lived somewhere where there were no ice hockey facilities but you could play roller, would you make the move to roller or just not play at all?

Also, for you guys who aren't fans of roller, what is it about it that you don't like?

I'm not trying to start an ice vs. roller war, just an intelligent discussion of why one is preferred over the other.

One of the main reasons I don't like roller hockey is because it's impossible to stop on a dime and whatnot, you've got to do fast sweeping turns to stop or slow down, I could just never get used to it even when I used to play roller a few years ago. When I played it was on an outdoor asphalt rink though, i've heard you can do regular ice hockey style stops on sport court rinks but i'm not sure, never skated on one before.

[Briggy 0]

Hypothetical for you guys who play only ice:  if you lived somewhere where there were no ice  hockey facilities but you could play roller, would you make the move to roller or just not play at all?

Also, for you guys who aren't fans of roller, what is it about it that you don't like? 

I'm not trying to start an ice vs. roller war, just an intelligent discussion of why one is preferred over the other.

One of the main reasons I don't like roller hockey is because it's impossible to stop on a dime and whatnot, you've got to do fast sweeping turns to stop or slow down, I could just never get used to it even when I used to play roller a few years ago. When I played it was on an outdoor asphalt rink though, i've heard you can do regular ice hockey style stops on sport court rinks but i'm not sure, never skated on one before.

I can stop on a dime as well as many others. It just takes time like anything else. After awhile you just start doing it not even know you have.

[bulletproof_funk 0]

I only play ice hockey, no ball hockey or roller. I don't like roller pucks much, nor the stopping thing. I've played ice for a while now so I would find going to roller right now to be strange. If I was just starting out in hockey and ice wasn't an option, I would probably choose roller since i wouldn't know the difference in that situation. And ball hockey... anyone can play ball hockey, but to play roller or ice requires alot more skill. ;)

[thejackal 46]

Ice, and nothing after this season's over

[MDE3 0]

Truthfully, people who I know who play roller hockey have ruined my opinion of it. All of the crossover kids who played roller and switched to ice have been idiots. The one or two kids who have played roller who now play ice that I like all hate roller now. I guess I just really hate how people who learn roller and then switch to ice play, the no defense, no passing, big sweeping turns instead of stopping. It just drives me nuts. I know that I don't have the best opinion of roller hockey formed, I'm sure its not as bad as I think it is, and that not everyone who plays it is a complete douche. If I had no ice rink around here I would play roller as a last resort, but if I had no ice rink to begin with, I wouldn't have started to play roller.

Kosy....you need to get to see some high end inline being played...and in the Tohrs Pro..hitting is allowed along the boards, and in XIHL it's full contact just like ice.

Top of the line inline hockey players can do everything on inlines that you describe on ice..the problem for most who do not respect the sport, is they never see it being played at those levels unless they go to a Narch/Tohrs/UsaInline etc. Regioanl or national tournament, or take in some semi pro games or college games.

It was funny because there was a poster last summer who posted both on Seelweenies as well as on IHC about watching the World Championships up in Ontario (I think it was Kitchener or London Ont.) His first posts on Seelweenies came after watching Mexico play I think Argentina...and what he said was essentially that "if this is the top level of inline hockey...I am never going to waste my time watching it again....."

But then later he got to watch the game between Canada and the USA in either the preliminary rounds or the quarters and his impression was: "this was the most exciting hockey game, inline or ice, I have ever watched"

If you get a chance to see some good inline being played...you might change your impression.

[kosydar 0]

I'd totally be down for watching a high end game, the problem is there are none around me. So I guess for now I'm just stuck basing my opinion of roller hockey on the local kids.

[Shorthanded67 0]

I really hate for this to de-volve into another "ice VS inline" thread, but....

A lot of people's perception of inline hockey is a semi-organized game being played on a parking lot with plastic-bladed Mylec sticks. Or at best, a game played on an old dusty wooden floor rink.

To echo MDE3's statements, there is some great inline hockey being played at the higher levels of NARCh, TORHS, etc.... Even a top level no-check house league at a quality facility is enjoyable to watch. Personally my big attraction to the sport is the 4-on-4 matchup and the amount of open floor. We've goofed around playing 5-on-5 at times and it just seems too crowded out there.

Another common misconception is that game scores are 11-10, 9-8, etc.... Not totally true. PLENTY of low-scoring games among the more talented, defensively disciplined team. Although back when RHI (Roller Hockey International) was in existence, the average total goals scored per game was 16! I remember hearing that statistic back on ESPN2 and it has stuck with me to this day. I'd also dare to say that the overall roller hockey talent now is greater than when RHI was alive and kicking.

I've shocked a lot of people about roller hockey. Usually if I mention to someone that I play hockey, they think it's pretty cool until I say it's roller hockey. Once they get to the rink (at least the nicer rink in my area), and see the whole facility, atmosphere, and game....they're usually impressed.

But then again, just like most things in life.....it's not for everyone. :P

[MDE3 0]

I'd totally be down for watching a high end game, the problem is there are none around me.  So I guess for now I'm just stuck basing my opinion of roller hockey on the local kids.

Unfortunately one of the limitations of inline, has been that so many of the better players are those who recieved their coaching and training from playing ice. There is a general move afoot within the elite levels and the semi pro teams to get their elite players involved in training the kids on how to play the sport properly so that inline can "grow their own" so to speak, from within, and not be so dependant on ice.

I have long been a proponent of teaching players from 12 and up the "full contact game", for inline, because in general it makes for better players..There are some skills in the sport you just do not learn in the non contact version, and some which take much more time to develop. Consequently the better inline players over the years, have usually been players who played both sports(some exceptions). However I believe inline could take the lead as a different sport, in more rigorously controlling the hitting, in order to make the sport safer. Making sure that all hit's are from within the players field of vision..no exceptions.

The full contact version would only be played at "competitive league" levels. House leagues and rec leagues would remain non contact..much like ice. Like ice as well, introductory levels would remain non contact. In this way the credibility of the sport would tend to be enhnaced in the eyes of amny "ice only" players, and in addition I believe more skilled coaches from ice would also be more comfortable making the transition to teaching inline.

The latest wheel and chassis technology has made a huge difference in the way the sport can be played..getting rid of the "big sweeping turns" and allowing players to go into the boards at full speed knowing they can stop on a dime...this was probably the biggest technical difference between the two sports. Now it remains for the coaches within the sport to teach the players how to effect this capability.

I think it is radically important for the future of all hockey, that inline and ice become much closer...it is the best way to grow fans for the sport..to have people playing it in some version.

[#1STUD 0]

Roller only. Played ice a few times with the last time being about 4 years ago. Basically an ego thing-- I sucked at ice and was above-average in roller. Not to mention how huge roller is here in St. Louie (Lindewood U.)

Roller only.  Played ice a few times with the last time being about 4 years ago.  Basically an ego thing--  I sucked at ice and was above-average in roller.  Not to mention how huge roller is here in St. Louie (Lindewood U.)

Do you play for lindenwood?

I have played roller my whole life and i have played against players that play both ice and roller and i never seem to have a problem going up against them. IMO it seems that most ice players dont really appreciate roller until they try to play it.

[Squirrel 0]

i mainly play ice but i want to play inline this summer

[MDE3 0]

I have played roller my whole life and i have played against players that play both ice and roller and i never seem to have a problem going up against them.

Like I said..with a few exceptions....

But if you take the players on either of the two men's National Teams....how many are pure roller players? At the top levels of Narch and Tohrs Pro?....Inline needs to be able to teach their players well enough so that the top players in the game could as easily come from an inline background as from a dual back ground.

[Chadd 916]

House leagues and rec leagues would remain non contact..much like ice.

Make that "checking" instead of contact and I'd agree with you. It's not possible to play the game without contact but checking can be eliminated without changing the nature of the game. Many people, referees included, don't realize how much contact USA Hockey says is permissible in a "no-check" game. Nearly all of my experience is in ice, only a little is in roller.

[jay 1]

I hate to disagree and stoke the fire on the ice vs. inline debate, but I find the inline game, even at a very high level, absolutely brutal to watch. I do enjoy playing inline as much as ice but the choppy flow and the bouncing and rolling puck makes watching the game a chore for me. Sorry if I offended anyone.

[MDE3 0]

Are you talking about watching Narch Platinum Pro action, Piha, MLRH/XIHL or club play? Also the only floors where the bouncing and rolling puck seems to be such an issue are some latex over concrete floors, raw concrete floors, wood floors, and ice court, which in my opinion tends to promote eratic puck flow more than Sport Court or Spider Court, as well as being very hard on wheels.

The advent of some of the newer chassis like the Hum'er, combined with the extreme grip provided by the new wheels like the Rink rats and the Dynasty Pro's, allows the skating of the inline game to much more closely resemble the flow of an ice game..where players can stop on a dime and no longer need to prepare to stop 10' in advance with a "T stop", or coast in large circles to change direction. This newer technology once it is more wide spread, and once inline players become accustomed to the techniques they permit....may mark the biggest change in the way the inline game has been played in years.

PS ....I also keep posting to keep the voting on the poll going..lol. I find the trend very interesting.

[Eazy_b97 1]

I see pro's and con's to watching the best in-line (at least when it was available here). It seemed very basketballish with the flow. I remember during the short time our area adopted, what I refer to as real inline, it was fantastic. Amazing to play, even better to watch. However when you get almost like a hybrid, which is common around here, it's great to play, but awful on the eyes. It's like 4 on 4 ice hockey, with no hitting. I haven't seen alot of high tempo in-line recently and I only get to play maye 3 or 4 tourneys a year on sport court, but can the guys down their regularly stop on a dime going full speed into a corner MDE3? I remember I tried one of my last roller games (on concrete) and my rinkrats almost overly gripped and I almost broke my ankle.

[MDE3 0]

House leagues and rec leagues would remain non contact..much like ice.

Make that "checking" instead of contact and I'd agree with you. It's not possible to play the game without contact but checking can be eliminated without changing the nature of the game.

I stand corrected....you are quite right. However I still believe that by teaching "checking" at a younger level, the players will become much better all around at an earlier level even though the majority of recreational play would remain "non check".

[Accord 0]

The advent of some of the newer chassis like the Hum'er, combined with the extreme grip provided by the new wheels like the Rink rats and the Dynasty Pro's, allows the skating of the inline game to much more closely resemble the flow of an ice game..where players can stop on a dime and no longer need to prepare to stop 10' in advance with a "T stop", or coast in large circles to change direction. This newer technology once it is more wide spread, and once inline players become accustomed to the techniques they permit....may mark the biggest change in the way the inline game has been played in years.

PS ....I also keep posting to keep the voting on the poll going..lol. I find the trend very interesting.

Where can I find more information on this?

[jay 1]

Are you talking about watching Narch Platinum Pro action, Piha, MLRH/XIHL or club play? Also the only floors where the bouncing and rolling puck seems to be such an issue are some latex over concrete floors, raw concrete floors, wood floors, and ice court, which in my opinion tends to promote eratic puck flow more than Sport Court or Spider Court, as well as being very hard on wheels.

The advent of some of the newer chassis like the Hum'er, combined with the extreme grip provided by the new wheels like the Rink rats and the Dynasty Pro's, allows the skating of the inline game to much more closely resemble the flow of an ice game..where players can stop on a dime and no longer need to prepare to stop 10' in advance with a "T stop", or coast in large circles to change direction. This newer technology once it is more wide spread, and once inline players become accustomed to the techniques they permit....may mark the biggest change in the way the inline game has been played in years.

PS ....I also keep posting to keep the voting on the poll going..lol. I find the trend very interesting.

I've watched a few of the web casts of the Narch Finals in the past as well as a couple "Elite" league games here in SoCal. All were palyed on Sport Court as far as I could tell. While the level of the players was about as high as it gets (I know most of the Elite players also play in the Narch Pro division) the overall nature of the inline game based on the puck, floor, and skating technique is generally choppy and slow in comparison to ice hockey. IMO anyway...

One other beef I have with inline is I find that players are a lot more selfish and the game seems to have promoted the individual play over team play. Granted I havn't played anywhere serious or with many seriously good players but there are a heck of a lot more hot dogs palying inline hockey then there are playing ice.

I also think it's interesting to note that while the majority of the posts here on MSH seem to be related to ice that more then half of those that have voted play both. Certainly more then I would have guessed. For myself I play inline more then ice based mainly on $$ but I wonder how many would choose inline over ice regardless of cost?

[Aggie 9]

I play both, but roller three times a week. Looking to start playing beer league ice.

[MDE3 0]

I see pro's and con's to watching the best in-line (at least when it was available here). It seemed very basketballish with the flow. I remember during the short time our area adopted, what I refer to as real inline, it was fantastic. Amazing to play, even better to watch. However when you get almost like a hybrid, which is common around here, it's great to play, but awful on the eyes. It's like 4 on 4 ice hockey, with no hitting. I haven't seen alot of high tempo in-line recently and I only get to play maye 3 or 4 tourneys a year on sport court, but can the guys down their regularly stop on a dime going full speed into a corner MDE3? I remember I tried one of my last roller games (on concrete) and my rinkrats almost overly gripped and I almost broke my ankle.

I don't say it's the majority of all inline players, but at the elite levels it's getting there. I watch a lot of full contact inline where being able to stop "on a dime" pays something more of a premium vs the "non contact" version of the sport, so my view may be skewed.

It takes practice obviously, and is achievable but I am not recommending the practice while heading full speed into the boards. When I ran clinics we used to practice "jump stops" which is basically turning sideways in the air and landing on both feet and "planting the landing"....starting at slower speeds obviously and working up to game speeds. Very important to let the individuals work their way up to speed at their own pace to avoid turning a lot of ankles. As players become familiar with this technique, they no longer really "jump stop" but effect the same thing with minimum "lift"..the newer wheel grip aids this a lot. The key is coming down with legs bent to absorb the shock and then pushing off by extending the legs to "plant" the wheels. Not really dissimilar to ice actually but the pivot is when there is no "rocker" to pivot on..

As for the way elite level inline is played..the comments about the slowness of play is not innacurate, as the practice of puck control from behind one's own net, and waiting for the best opportunity tends to make the pace slower than ice. "Mudcat Hockey" as some will call it..they weren't the only ones to use this system, but may be the most well known for it. I think adding the full check at this level changes that significantly though.

[MDE3 0]

I hope that the snapshot of the ratios of ice to inline players is representative of the whole sport of hockey. The combination of players who play both inline and ice as well as only inline is showing as 29.1% more than the players who play only ice hockey. Of course conversely the combination of players who play ice only as well as those who play both, is about 3 and a half times greater than those who play only inline lol.

I think that more and more the marketing efforts to sell the game of hockey to the general public (as relates to growing the fan base) should inlude targeting both versions of the sport.

[Chadd 916]

In this area the number of "dual" players is about 20% of the total number of players. Some who do play both only do so very informally.

[Eazy_b97 1]

MDE3 I overlooked the fact your mostly around contact in-line. For contact it basically defeats the hold onto the puck method because you can just take the guy out.

It was actually explained to that it is physically impossible to stop in inline like you would for ice. Something about the wheels literally breaking to allow this. I remember this was when the V-form was big around here because "it allowed you to play like hockey". I haven't had a technical practice since I was in my very early stages for inline. Basically what I do is a really sharp turn to stop. I've also been taugh to turn my body and stop on the inside of my boot. I basically tried a real ice stop when I went tumbling into the boards :(. I really wish I could get more practice around here. I found out yesterday if I want to play winter in-line its about an 1:15 min drive each way for me.

[stevoc 0]

Hypothetical for you guys who play only ice:  if you lived somewhere where there were no ice  hockey facilities but you could play roller, would you make the move to roller or just not play at all?

Also, for you guys who aren't fans of roller, what is it about it that you don't like? 

I'm not trying to start an ice vs. roller war, just an intelligent discussion of why one is preferred over the other.

One of the main reasons I don't like roller hockey is because it's impossible to stop on a dime and whatnot, you've got to do fast sweeping turns to stop or slow down, I could just never get used to it even when I used to play roller a few years ago. When I played it was on an outdoor asphalt rink though, i've heard you can do regular ice hockey style stops on sport court rinks but i'm not sure, never skated on one before.

I can stop on a dime as well as many others. It just takes time like anything else. After awhile you just start doing it not even know you have.

I also, as well as most people with some skill where I play, can stop with a hockey stop. The facilty I play at has a great coach for what they call hockey 101. Stopping is one of the key lessons.

Granted, the beginners can't stop that way yet, but give them time. We were all there once. :D

[MDE3 0]

Stevoc..great to hear....the ability to stop and cut has improved dramatically with the new technology, but as was observed it takes practice...and is usually more likely to be seen in those who play dedicated inline hockey. However the fact that it can be done will continue to change the pace of the game.